


The beast inside

by YUGottaBeSoRood



Series: Plance Disney Adventure (almost) [7]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Beauty and the Beast Fusion, F/F, F/M, I think she got more though, Lance just wants to be human again, M/M, Pidge just wanted her father back :(, Prince Lance (Voltron)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-11
Updated: 2021-01-20
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:53:29
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 17,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28148655
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YUGottaBeSoRood/pseuds/YUGottaBeSoRood
Summary: Once upon a time, in a faraway land, a young prince lived in a shining castle. The prince was spoiled, flirty, and narcissitic. But one night, a witch came to his door. The superficial prince turned her offer of shelter down and dismissed her payment, a beautiful rose. She was enraged by his act and so, she showed her true colors. She turned into a beautiful enchantress and cursed the prince and servants living in the castle, giving him as a curse, the beautiful rose who would bloom until his 21st year of life. If he didn't manage to learn how love and win the love of another back, he was doomed to stay in that form for eternity. As the years passed, he fell into despair, and lost all hope, for who could ever learn to love a beast?But there was Pidge. A little village girl that had the brains of a genius and a soul with pure intentions. Will she be able to save the beast by seeing under his appearance? Or was the poor beast stuck in that form forever?
Relationships: Hunk/Shay (Voltron), Lance/Pidge | Katie Holt
Series: Plance Disney Adventure (almost) [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2035456
Comments: 3
Kudos: 8





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Heavily inspired by the script of the Beauty and the Beast movie.

_Once upon a time, in a faraway land, a young prince lived in a shining castle. Although he had everything his heart desired, the prince was spoiled, filrty, and narcissitic. But then, one winter’s night, an old beggar woman came to the castle and offered him a single rose in return for shelter from the bitter cold. Repulsed by her haggard appearance, the prince turned the old woman away, but she warned him not to be deceived by appearances, for beauty is found within. And when he dismissed her again, the old woman’s ugliness melted away to reveal a beautiful enchantress._

_The prince tried to apologize, but it was too late, for she had seen that there was no love in his heart, and as punishment, she transformed him into a hideous beast, and placed a powerful spell on the castle, and all who lived there. Ashamed of his monstrous form, the beast concealed himself inside his castle, with a magic mirror as his only window to the outside world. The rose she had offered was truly an enchanted rose, which would bloom until his 21st year. If he could learn to love another, and earn her love in return by the time the last petal fell, then the spell would be broken. If not, he would be doomed to remain a beast for all time. As the years passed, he fell into despair, and lost all hope, for who could ever learn to love a beast?_

* * *

Pidge was just exiting the house in her trousers as she was going to do her usual morning routine. Little town, it’s a quiet village. Every day, like the one before. Little town, full of little people. Pidge was bored by this way the days repeated. She walked around town to watch as the people greeted each other. Then she felt a familiar smell and smirked as she rushed to the front of the bakery. 

"Good morning, Pidge!" She smiled at the man. 

"Morning, mister!" She said, excited to buy some fresh bread. She dropped him some coins and took some bread from his tray of freshly cooked dough. She smelled it and sighed in amazement at the beautiful smell. The man chuckled ta her as she put the bread in her bag. 

"Where are you off to, Pidge?"

"The bookshop! I just finished the most wonderful story, about a beanstalk and an ogre and also this beautiful book about inventions--" The man dismissed her with a wave. 

"That’s nice…Marie, the baguettes! Hurry up!!" The cook said, turning to his bakery as he rushed inside. Pidge sighed and started walking again. She got to the bookshop and smiled as she walked in, letting the shop-keeper know she got there with a greeting.

"Good morning. I’ve come to return the book I borrowed." The man, climbed up on a ladder and looking through books smiled warmly. 

"Ah, Pidge! Finished already?" The man asked, amused. Pidge chuckled. 

"Oh, I couldn’t put it down! Have you got anything new?" Pidge asked, leaning against the door-frame as the librarian put the book on his shelf. The man sighed and shook his head. 

"Not since yesterday." Pidge shrugged. 

"That’s all right. I’ll borrow… this one." She said as she quickly climbed on the ladder, picking a beautiful book from the shelves. The librarian laughed at her. 

"That one? But you’ve read it twice!" Pidge slid down on the ladder, rolling her eyes. 

"Well it’s my favorite! Far off places, daring swordfights, magic spells, a prince in disguise!" Pidge said. The man shook his head. 

"Well, if you like it all that much, it’s yours!" Pidge's eyes widened and she pushed her glasses up. 

"But sir-!" The man shook his head. 

"I insist!" She smiled warmly and nodded. 

"Well thank you. Thank you very much!" She started walking out of the shop. Some boys were looking after her as she was walking. The librarian frowned as he eyed the young men looking after Pidge. He picked up the broom that he had inside and hit it with them. 

"Watch it you animals!" The man grumbled as he shooed them away. They all yelped and started running. Pidge was walking, unbothered, her head in the book. She walked around as people were watching her. She may have been reading but she could easily avoid her surroundings. Her father thought her well. Pidge jumped over some kids, skipping the rope. They laughed and Pidge gave them a warm smile. She walked avoiding people by twirling past them with ease. Lotor noticed her and smirked. 

"Wow! You didn’t miss a shot, Lotor! You’re the greatest hunter in the whole world!" Morvok said. Lotor chuckled.

"I know." He said, puffing his chest. Pidge wasn't bothered and just passed by. 

"Huh. No beast alive stands a chance against you…and no girl for that matter!" Morvok said. Lotor scoffed. 

"It’s true, Morvok, and I’ve got my sights set on that one!" He said, pointing at Pidge as she was walking. Morvok spurted with wide eyes. 

"The inventor’s daughter?!" Lotor smirked cockily and nodded. 

"She’s the one! The lucky girl I’m going to marry." Lotor said, putting his hands on his hips.

"But she’s--" Morvok tried to say. Lotor covered his mouth. 

"The most beautiful girl in town. If....she'd wear a dress and get rid of those glasses. And grow her hair again." Lotor said with a determined nod. 

"I know--" Lotor shut him up again. 

"And that makes her the best. And don’t I deserve the best?" Morvok nodded, scared by his aggressive demeanor. 

"Well of course, I mean you do, but I mean--" Lotor started walking after Pidge. She was easily making her way through the crowd. Morvok was following Lotor. 

"Right from the moment when I met her, saw her. I said she’s gorgeous and I fell. Here in town there’s only her, who is as beautiful as me. So I’m making plans to woo and marry her, Morvok." People were looking after Pidge. 

"Look there she goes, that girl is strange but special! A most peculiar mademoiselle! It’s a pity and a sin. She doesn’t quite fit in! But she really is a funny girl. A beauty. But funny." Lotor could hear the people talk. He ignored them and managed to catch up to Pidge. He caught her way. 

"Hello, Katie." Pidge rolled her eyes at the use of her real name. 

"Hello, Lotor--" He grabbed her book and looked at it with a raised brow. He then looked at Pidge with a raised brow.

"How can you read this? There’s no pictures! Isn't it hard for you?" Pidge scoffed as she with ease jumped up, using the wall behind her to propulsate herself up. She dusted it off using a handkerchief. 

"Well, some people use their imaginations." She said to Lotor as she eyed him, frowning. Lotor was handsome. Girls were all over him and she could see them watching them. Lotor was tall with long luscious hair of a silver color and dark skin and purple eyes. Pidge was the total opposite. Short red-ish hair, hazel eyes, she was short of stature, her pale skin covered in freckles and she always dressed like a boy. She wasn't the perfect girl at all. She failed to see how beautiful she was. That annoyed Lotor. 

"It’s about time you got your head out of those books and paid attention to more important things… like me! The whole town’s talking about it." The Bimbettes, who are looking on, sigh.

"It’s not right for a woman to read--soon she starts getting ideas… and thinking!!" Pidge frowned at his sexist comment and looked at him, unimpressed. 

"What a disaster, huh...?" Pidge said, rolling her eyes. Lotor puffed his chest in pride as he thought she agreed. Pidge face-palmed. 

"Lotor, you are positively primeval." Lotor smiled. 

"Why thank you." Pidge snorted as he agreed. He didn't know what it meant, did he?

"Hey, whaddya say you and me take a walk over to the tavern and have a look at my hunting trophies?" 

"Maybe some other time?" The Bimbettes looked dumfound. 

"What’s wrong with her?!"

"She’s crazy!"

"He’s gorgeous!" Pidge was getting pulled by Lotor. She ducked his hand and managed to free herself from his hold. 

"Please, Lotor. I can’t. I have to get home and help my father." Lotor and Morvok started laughing. Pidge frowned and snarled. 

"Ha ha ha, that crazy old loon, he need all the help he can get!" Pidge's mouth fell open at their jackass move. 

"Don’t you talk about my father that way you- you human with the intelligence of a worm!" Pidge said, stopping herself from cursing at him. Morvok stopped laughing and frowned. 

"A worm..?" He muttered. Lotor frowned and looked at Morvok. 

"Yes, don't talk about her father like that!" And he smacked the smaller guy. Morvok was short, short like Pidge if not more. He had light skin and had silver hair as well. 

"My father’s not crazy! He’s a genius! You're just too dimwitted to understand." Lotor frowned. 

"Now you're making up words." Pidge face-palmed and started leaving. 

"I'm leaving--" Suddenly an explosion came from her house. 

"Oh no..." She said, wide eyed. Lotor and Morvok howled with laughter as she started running. 

"Papa?" She says as she opens the door to her basement. Her father looks at her as he coughs then throws a ranch her way. She dodges it with ease and sighs in relief when she sees he's not injured. 

"How on earth did that happen? Dog gonnit!" Her father said and Pidge looked at his invention. 

"Are you all right, Papa?" She asks. Her father sits down and his shoulders slump. 

"I’m about ready to give up on this hunk of junk!" Pidge looks underneath the machine. 

"Father..." She says with a sad look as she realizes his mistake. 

"You always say that." She says, amused as she sits up. Her father frowns. 

"I mean it, this time. I’ll never get this boneheaded contraption to work." Pidge chuckled. 

"Yes, you will. And you’ll win first prize at the fair tomorrow. Then we can move in with brother and mother in a bigger house where they are. In the city." Her father smiled then frowned. 

"Hmmmph!" He says, pretending to be mad. 

"…and become a world famous inventor!" She says as she puts her hands on his shoulders. Her father's eyes widen and he smiles. 

"You really believe that?" He says, softened. Pidge giggles. 

"I always have." Sam Holt, a man taller than her with grey hair, smiles at her. 

"Well, what are we waiting for. I’ll have this thing fixed in no time." He slides under the machine and Pidge is already picking the tool he needs from the table. 

"Hand me that dog-legged clencher ther-- Oh, thank you. So, did you have a good time in town today?" Pidge groans and her father chuckles. 

"I got a new book but-- Papa, do you think I’m odd?" She asks in a sadder tone. Her father slides out, in shock. He appears from under machine with bizarre goggle contraption on his head distorting his eyes.

"My daughter? Odd? Where would you get an idea like that?" Pidge looked unimpressed and pointed at herself, pushing her glasses up. Her father frowns. 

"Come on, no way!" He says as he slides back under. Pidge sighs. 

"Oh, I don’t know. It’s just that I’m not sure I fit in here. There’s no one I can really talk to..." Pidge says, looking down. Her father hums in thought. 

"What about that Lotor? He’s a handsome fellow!" Pidge scoffed. 

"He’s handsome all right...BUT he's rude and conceited and… Oh Papa, he’s not for me!" Pidge says, defeated, as she sits down. Her father chuckles. 

"Well, don’t you worry, cause this invention’s gonna be the start of a new life for us." He comes out. Pidge looks at the machine and gets on her knees. She slides underneath as well and picks up a screwdriver as well. Her father smirks and raises a brow as she works. 

"I think that’s done it. Now, let’s give it a try!" Pidge says, finishing. The two get to the back of the weird machine and pull a lever. It starts humming and thumping and then-- It starts chopping wood like it's meant to! Pidge's eyes widen. 

"IT WORKS! FATHER, IT REALLY WORKS!" She says as she dodges from the way of one of the logs as they get thrown in a beautiful pile alongside the wall. Her father's eyes widen as well. 

"It does? It does! I DID IT! PIDGE, I DID IT!" They both hug and Pidge pulls her father out of the way of a log. 

"Watch it, wood is being thrown here." Pidge says, amused.

"Ha ha." Her father says, unimpressed. They both laugh and hug again. 

"Hitch up Phillipe, girl. I’m off to the fair!" Her father says, pointing up. At the use of girl, Pidge pushes him a bit and a log hits his head. 

"Ok, deserved that. Sorry, Pidge. But you are my little girl." Pidge snorted. 

"Don't sweet talk yourself out of this." Pidge says. And she got the horse ready, hooked him to the invention and he leaves with her father. Pidge waves as he is leaving. They can finally go and be a whole family again. Money won't be a problem anymore...they can get a big enough place for all of them and take care of her sick mother! 

What she didn't expect was that the next day, Lotor and Morvok had a plan. 

"Heh! Oh boy! She’s gonna get the surprise of her life, huh, Lotor?" The taller man chuckled as they watched the house from the bushes. 

"Yep. This is her lucky day!" Lotor said, puffing his chest up, his ego raising even more. Lotor lets go of a branch from the bush, which swings back and hits Morvok in the mouth. Lotor turns to the band, wedding guests and others, apparently just out of sight of Pidge’s cottage.

"I’d like to thank you all for coming to my wedding. But first, I better go in there and… propose to the girl!" The minister, the baker, and the others laugh heartily. The bimbettes were crying their eyes out.

"Now, you Morvok. When Katie and I come out that door--" The shorter man nodded. 

"Oh I know, I know! I strike up the band!" He turns and begins directing the band in "Here Comes the Bride." Lotor slams a baritone over his head.

"Not yet!" Lotor grits through his teeth. Morvok frowns. 

"Sorry." He says, pushing the baritone off his head. Pidge, at the time, was sitting in a chair reading her new book. There is a knock at the door. She puts the book down and walks to the door. She reaches up and pulls down a viewing device her father and her had built. She peeks through and sees an anachronistically accurate fish-eye view of Lotor. She groans in annoyance, and pushes the door open. 

"Lotor what a pleasant...No...What a surprise." She says with a fake smile. Lotor grins at her 'charmingly'. Pidge wants to scrunch her face up. She knew he was up to something. 

"Isn’t it though? I’m just full of surprises." He says, coming in unannounced. Pidge backs away from him. He starts walking closer.

"You know, Katie. There’s not a girl in town who wouldn’t love to be in your shoes. This is the day--" He stops as he sees a mirror and starts admiring himself. Pidge was dumbfound at the move. What an asshole. He should just marry his reflection, really. God- imagine if he was proposing-- 

"This is the day your dreams come true." Lotor says, smiling at her. Pidge raises a brow and pushes her glasses up. 

"What do you know about my dreams, Lotor?" Pidge asks, crossing her arms as Lotor starts walking in her house. 

"Plenty. Here, picture this." Lotor says as he plops down in the chair and props his mud-covered feet up on Pidge's book. He begins to kick off his boots and wiggle his toes through his hole-y socks. Pidge scrunches her face up at his lack of manners.

"A rustic hunting lodge, my latest kill roasting on the fire, and my little wife, massaging my feet, while the little ones play with the dogs." Pidge was now positively disgusted. He pricked her nose between her fingers to stop the smell of his feet. Lotor got up in her face and smiled. 

"We’ll have six or seven." Pidge smiled, tensely, pretending to be unbothered and failing miserably. 

"..Dogs...??" She said, hopeful. Lotor laughed at her. 

"No, Katie! Strapping boys, like me!" Pidge gulped. Statistically, that meant a lot of-. Her smile dropped. 

"Imagine that...." She said as she picks up her book, places a mark in it, and puts it on the shelf.

"And do you know who that wife will be?" He says as he gets up behind her while she's at the shelf. 

"Let me think--" He corners her and Pidge shrinks. 

"You, Katie!" Pidge was now annoyed. HE comes in her house then has the audacity to try and demand she marries him? She eyed the door and came up with a plan. 

"Lotor, I’m speechless. I really don’t know what to say." She ducks under Lotor's arms and backs away, her back against the door. 

"Say you’ll marry me." He says, pining her against the door. She was utterly and fully disgusted. 

"I’m very sorry, Lotor, but I just don’t deserve you." Pidge said, pretending to be hurt as she reached for the doorknob. Lotor raised a brow confused. She twists the knob and the door opens, causing Lotor to lose his balance and tumble out the door and into a mud puddle, face first. The band started playing and Pidge kicked his boots out as well. Lotor got up from the mud with narrowed eyes. Morvok stopped the band and knelt down. 

"So, how’d it go?" Morvok asks. Lotor looks unimpressed. 

"I WILL have Katie as my wife, make no mistake about that!!" He says, picking Morvok up by the collar and then drops him in the mud. 

"Touchy!" Morvok says as Lotor is storming off, muddy and furious. Pidge pokes her head out. She snarls as she goes and picks up a bucket with chicken seeds. She looks at the chickens on the porch of her house. 

"Can you imagine? He asked me to marry him! Me, the wife of that boorish, brainless-- UGH!" She gets to the pen at the back of the house and frowns. 

"Madame Lotor, can’t you just see it?! Madame Lotor, his little 'wife'! Don't make me laugh. No, sir! Not me, and never will be. I want much more than this stupid provincial life! THE NERVE!" She says as she feeds the animals, annoyed by the nerve of the guy. She sighs as she runs a hand through her hair and starts walking on the hill behind her house. She looks at the beautiful landscape and sighs as she sits down. 

"I want thrill...adventure...a story! I want it more than I can tell. And for once I want... I want to have someone who understands me...I want so much more than they’ve got planned for me..." Suddenly, she brought back from her day dreaming as she hears the sound of a horse. Phillipe comes rushing into the field. Pidge's eyes widen. 

"Phillipe! What are you doing here? Where’s-- Where’s Papa?! Where is he, Phillipe?" The horse was neighing and jumping. Pidge pulled him down and started rubbing his head, calming him. 

"Shhh...It's ok..." She starts unhitching the machine's wagon from him and frowns. 

"Oh, we have to find him, you have to take me to him!" Pidge says. The horse makes and agreeing neigh and lets Pidge climb. She pulls the bridle and the horse gets in two back feet. They zoom towards the forest. 


	2. Chapter 2

"What is this place? Holy Mother it's HUGE!" Pidge says, staring at the gates in front of them. A castle looming in the distance of the giant yard. The horse snorts, then begins to buck as if something is scaring him. Pidge dismounts and comforts him.

"Phillipe, please, steady." She enters the gate and sees her father’s hat on the ground. Her eyes widen.

"Papa...God please don't tell me something happened to him..." Pidge says, looking up at the sky. She starts walking towards the castle. The gardens were big, but empty, abandoned even. She got to a huge door but it seemed to be frosted. It was the end of autumn and start of winter but still...it was too cold. She kind of wishes she had her cloak. 

"Peculiar and more peculiar...would you look at that..." Pidge says, as she starts feeling the engravings on the door. She backs up and manages to push the door open. She was small but she wasn't as weak as some would say. 

"Hello? Is anyone here? Hopefully someone with no intent to actually kill me...But someone nonetheless." Pidge asks. She was sure she heard a snort at her dumb joke. She looked around to see nothing. 

"Weird... Now what is this place...?" Pidge asks to herself. 

"Father? Father, are you here? Papa?" Pidge keeps calling as she walks around the massive place. She snarls. 

"Ok, whoever made this place needs to give people a flipping map! This is outrageous!! I think I have been walking in circles!" Pidge says, crossing her arms. What Pidge didn't know is that the objects were watching. She shuddered as a chill ran up her spin. She was feeling watched. Her stance widened a bit as she walked and she tensed up, ready to dodge and attack or run. 

"Father?" She asked, again. Two objects were in a room close by. A 3 armed candlestick and a clock. 

"Keith! You saw that too, right?? Did you see that?! It’s another human!" The candlestick said. The clock scoffed. 

"I know, Hunk." The clock said, quite annoyed. 

"We need to warn him!" Hunk chases after her, hoping on his foot. Keith spurts in surprise and goes after him. 

"Hunk! Wait a minute!" Keith snarled. Hunk just kept walking. Pidge groaned. 

"Who even built this place so big!?!" She muttered, clearly annoyed. 

"A boy as well??" Hunk said. Pidge caught the glim of the candlestick and her eyes widened. She put her hand at the ready on her pen-knife. 

"Hey! Wait! Have you seen my father?!" Pidge started heading their way. Hunk panicked and started going towards a corridor that was leading to a staircase. Pidge climbed the staircase only to see...no one...

"What the...??" Pidge said, quirking a brow. 

"Anyone hereee??" Pidge said. 

"Pidge?" She froze. 

"DAD!" She said as she looked for the source of the sound. A giant wooden door with bars inside of it. 

"How did you find me?" he asked. Pidge shudeered as their hands touched. She started blowing in them as the man coughed. 

"Oh, your hands are like ice. We have to get you out of here--"

"Pidge, you need to leave this place!" Her father warned her. She looked at him in shock. 

"Who’s done this to you?!" Pidge asked, ignoring his plea. 

"No time to explain. You must go...now!" Pidge frowned. 

"I won’t leave you!" Pidge said, determined. Suddenly, something pulled her away. The shadows were thick as all the torches in the room had been blown out by a gust of wind. She hissed as she couldn't see anything. 

"What are you doing here?!" A voice asked her. Pidge was surprised to see it was neither deep nor high-pitched. It was...human like. Pidge frowned. Her father was panicking. 

"Pidge, RUN!" She snarled. 

"Who’s there? Who are you?!" She asked, her voice booming. 

"The master of this castle!" The voice responded. Pidge sighed. 

"I’ve come for my father. Please let him out! Can’t you see he’s sick?!" Pidge asked. The voice responded back, clearly angered. 

"Then he shouldn’t have trespassed here!" The voice yelled at her. Pidge's brows forrowed even further. 

"But he could die. Please, I’ll do anything!!" She asked, trying to maybe reason with this mysterious person. 

"There’s nothing you can do. He’s my prisoner." The silhouette that had been talking, the owner of the voice, started walking away. Pidge frowned. 

"Oh, there must be some way I can--" Her eyes widened as a dumb stupid and very reckless idea came to her. 

"W-Wait!" She said as she got up from the cold floor. The silhouette paused. 

"Take me instead!" The man...if it even was a man...let out a strange sound, like a rumble- no....it was a growl. 

"And that would benefit me, because-- Wait...you would...take his place? Why would a boy do that??" Pidge looked at her father. He was mortified in fear. Pidge then realized something. 

"Wait did you say- Nevermind....But...If i did, would you let him go?" Pidge asked. The silhouette frowned. 

"...Yes. BUT! You must promise to stay here forever!" Pidge's eyes widened as she thought this over. But then, she realizes she can't even see the culprit! 

"Come into the light." Pidge demanded. She meets two ocean blue eyes but- the owner was a beast. It was a bit taller than an average human and it had sharp claws. It had fangs and dark fur, reminding her somehow of the shade of a sun-kissed skin. Her breath got caught in her throat at the sight. Oh God- what was she DOING?! 

"Pidge, no! I won’t let you do this!" Her father says to her. She regains her composure, then steps into the beam of light.

"You have my word." The beast doesn't hesitate to rush behind her to free her father. 

"Done!" The beast says as the door creeks open and she slumps down. Sam rushes to her side. 

"Pidge, you DON'T need to do this- I am old, I lived my life!" Pidge smiles saddly at her father, then the beast starts dragging him out. Her eyes widen and she reaches out to them. 

"WAIT!" But it's too late as the Beast drags Sam to the Pallenquin. 

"No, please spare my little Pidge! Please!" The man pleaded. The beast just snarled. 

"He no longer your concern. Take him to the village." The Pallenquin breaks the ivy holding it to the ground, then slinks off like a spider with Sam inside.

"Let me out! Please, let me out! Let me out! Please! Please! PIDGE!!!" The man pleads from inside. Pidge was watching from the tower as her father was taken away. The Beast was walking up the stairs when Hunk decided to interupt him. 

"Lance- I mean, Master!" The beast frowns and looks at him unimpressed. 

"First, don't call me that. Second, what?" He asks, a bit annoyed. Hunk chuckles warily. 

"Sorry, Lance. But...Since the boy is going to be with us for quite some time, I was thinking that you might want to offer him a more comfortable room--" Lance growled at Hunk. Hunk looked at Lance unimpressed as his lit up candles were blown out. 

"Or not...Sheesh..." Hunk said as Lance started walking up again. Then he saw Pidge, crying. 

"You- YOU! You didn’t even let me say good bye! I get it but- didn't you ever have a family?! I’ll never see him again! I didn’t get to say good-bye!" Pidge said, sniffling and wipping her eyes and nose with her sleeve. Lance rubbed his neck, awkwardly and looked away, a bit ashamed as he realized that indeed, he didn't let Pidge say goodbye. He felt bad so...he decided maybe Hunk wasn't so wrong. 

"I’ll show you to your room." Lance said solemnly as he turned away and started walking. Pidge blinked in surprise and arranged her glasses. 

"My...room? But I thought...." She asked, surprised. Lance scoffed. 

"You want to stay in the tower?" Pidge shook her head. 

"Then follow me." The two started walking the halls in awkward and thick silence. Hunk, held by Lance for light, looked at Pidge behind him. She was looking to the side at everything in the castle, getting her mind off of the fact she will never see her family again. 

"Say something to her." Hunk gritted through his teeth. Lance snorts then frowns. 

"I...um...hope you like it here." Lance said, awkwardly. Pidge eyed him with a quirked up brow, her eyes still a bit puffy. Lance looked at Hunk. He motioned for him to go on. 

"The castle is your home now, so you can go anywhere you like, except the West Wing." Pidge tilted her head. 

"What’s in the West Wing--?" She tried to ask and Lance turned to her, quickly. She jolted back. 

"It’s forbidden!" Pidge frowned. 

"Ok...You're lucky I'm scared out of my shits or I'd be making dumb jokes about this." Pidge mumbled as she rubbed her neck. Lance blinked in surprise at the comment. 

"Jokes? About getting imprisoned and being stuck in a practically abandoned castle?" Pidge snorted. 

"Yeah...Any fate is better than marrying someone as dumb as a pig in a mud bath." Pidge said, remembering Lotor. Lance snorted. Pidge blinked in surprise at that. But the beast tried to hide it as a cough. 

"So you do have a personality, huh...? I'm still mad, though." She said. Lance looked at her unimpressed. 

"Oh and also? Have this." She said as she threw the pen-knife into the wall to her side. 

"I bet that'd barely make a scratch through that thick fur of yours. It's clearly more of a tooth-pick than a weapon in this case." Pidge said, ashamed to recognize she had a weapon the whole time. Lance sighs.

"If it makes you feel safe...Keep it." Pidge's eyes widened. She nodded and picked it, pocketing it. 

"...Thanks..." Pidge said, burshing her thumb against the engravings on it's handle. It was a gift from her brother after all. She was happy to at least keep that. Hunk raised a brow and smirked. 

"That went...somewhat well." Hunk whispered. Lance shook Hunk and the candlestick made a gagging noise. 

"Sorry..." Hunk said to Lance. They arrived to the room. Pidge tilted her head as the door opened and light flodded in the room. 

"Now, if you need anything, my servants will attend you." Lance stated, more tenderly. Pidge appreciated the fact he was trying somewhat not to scare her. She was still however, mad. 

"Dinner--invite her to dinner." Hunk whispered. Lance starightened his back. 

"You will…join me for dinner. That’s not a request!" He said, growing angry. The door shut behind her. Pidge scoffed and crossed her arms. 

"So much for acting nice. Hope you don't woo every girl you see like this. You'd be a miserable virgin by 50." Pidge said, rolling her eyes. She sniffled and let her knees buckle then slid on the floor, crying, letting all the stress out. She will never see her family again. 

Meanwhile, in town, the bar was very lively. Lotor was sitting in a chair by the fire-place. 

"Who does she think she is? That girl has tangled with the wrong man. No one says ‘no’ to Lotor!" Morvok was coming to his side. The smaller man scoffed. 

"Darn right!" Morvok stated as he gave Lotor a beer and was about to drink his. Lotor took both and threw them in the fire in front of him. 

"Dismissed. Rejected. Publicly humiliated. Why, it’s more than I can bear." Lotor said, frowning. 

"More beer?" Morvok asked. Lotor turned his chair away. 

"What for? Nothing helps. I’m disgraced." Morvok runs to him. 

"Who you? Never! Lotor, you’ve got to pull yourself together." Lotor turned away again and Morvok went in front of him. 

"Gosh it disturbs me to see you, Lotor. Looking so down in the dumps. Every guy here’d love to be you, even when killing you!" Morvok stated. Lotor rolled his eyes. 

"There’s no man in town as admired as you. You’re everyone’s favorite guy. Everyone’s awed and inspired by you! And it’s not even hard to see why!" Lotor looked unimpressed. Morvok frowned. 

"No one’s slick, no one’s quick, no one’s next as incredibly thick as Lotor, for there’s no man in town half as manly!" Lotor smirked. 

"As a specimen, yes, I’m intimidating..." He stated. 

"For there’s no one as burly and brawny! As you see, He's got biceps to spare! Oh my~" The bimbettes said. Lotor chuckled and winked at them. The old cronies have picked up the chair and carry Lotor around in it. Morvok tries to flee, but they toss the chair into its normal place, and Morvok is pinned underneath. Sam bursts in frantically. 

"Help! Someone help me!" They all went silent. 

"Please! Please, I need your help! He’s got her. He’s got her locked in the dungeon." He said. 

"Who?"

"Katie! My Pidge! We must go. Now not a minute to lose!"

"Whoa! Slow down, Hol, old man. Who’s got Katie locked in a dungeon?" Lotor asked.

"A beast! A horrible, monstrous beast!" Sam has gone from person to person, pleading his case, until he is thrown at the feet of Lotor. A moment of silence, then the old cronies begin to laugh and mock him.

"Is it a big beast?"

"H-Huge!" Sams stutters.

"With a long, ugly snout?" 

"Hideously ugly!" Sam says, nodding. 

"And sharp, cruel fangs?"

"Yes, yes. Will you help me?" Sam says, with hope. Lotor looks at the cronies and makes a sign with his head.

"All right, old man. We’ll help you out." Lotor says.

"You will? Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!" Sam says. The old cronies pick up Pidge's father and help him out by throwing him through the door. 

"Crazy old Holt. Huh! He’s always good for a laugh!" One of the cronies says as the doors slam shut. 

"Crazy old Sam, hmm? Crazy old Sam Holt. Hmmm… Morvok, I’m afraid I’ve been thinking...." Lotor says, rubbing his chin. 

"That wacky old coot is Katie’s father, and his sanity’s only so-so. See I promised myself I’d be married to Katie, and right now I’m evolving a plan! Come here!" Lotor started whispering to Morvok. The smaller man was growing excited with each sentence. 

"Brilliant!" Morvok exclaimed. Everyone in the bar started laughing, cheering and having a good time again as Pidge's father was still trying to get help. But nobody was listening to the poor 'crazy' old man, Holt. 


	3. Chapter 3

Pidge was on her bed, staring up at the ceiling, sleepless, hungry and the wheels in her head turning at the speed of light when she heard a knock at the door. 

"Who is it?" Pidge asks, dully. The door opens to let in a tray with a kettle, a tea cup and some more cups. 

"I'm Allura. I thought you might like a spot of tea." Pidge blinks in disbelief as she realizes THE KETTLE JUST TALKED! 

"Oh...My....GOD! WAIT! What?!" Pidge says, her eyes widening. In her surprise, she falls out of bed at the feet of a wardrobe. 

"Oh~ Careful!" Pidge blinked in surprise. 

"Ok...I'm either...dead....high...or severely concussed since i'm having hallucinations...Or...are you some sort of mechanism?" Pidge says, getting on her knees and inspecting the wardrobe underneath. The cup starts chuckling. 

"What a curious person you are...But...didn't Lance say it was supposed to be a boy?" Pidge snorted. 

"I didn't bother to correct him when he called me a boy. But yes, I am indeed a girl." Pidge says, leaning against the bed. The kettle, cup and wardrobe looked at each other. She raised a brow. 

"What?" They all just shrugged. The other two holders the kettle and cup came with poured sugar and cream in her tea. She chuckled and shook her head still a bit in disbelief. 

"All right, now, Coran. That’ll do. Slowly, now. Don’t spill!" Allura scolded the cup. Coranhops over to Pidge, who is sitting on the floor with her knees to her chest, watching in awe as they moved. 

"Curiouser and curiouser...What a place i ended up in, huh...? And to think this morning i was just building my own invention...Pfft." She said, slightly amused as she picked the cup up, gently. 

"That was a very brave thing you did, my dear." Allura said. Pidge smiled. 

"You think so...? Heh...Anyone would have done the same...He is my father. Mother, she's sick. She needs him more than me. Plus, he still has my brother. He is better than me, after all." The three human objects all saddened as they heard that. 

"Cheer up, child. It’ll turn out all right in the end. You’ll see.... Ooh, listen to me… jabbering on while there’s a supper to get on the table. Coran!" Allura says. The cup and kettle leave with the two holders and the tray takes all of them out. The wardrobe approaches. 

"And you are...??" The wardrobe asks. Pidge smiles. 

"Katie...But, call me Pidge." She says. The wardrobe smiles. 

"Romelle! Pleasure! Well now, what shall we dress you in for dinner? Let’s see what I’ve got in my drawers!" The doors open only for some moths to fly out. Romelle gasps and closes the doors. Pidge snorts. 

"Oh! How embarrassing. Here we are!" Romelle opens the wardrobe. Pidge looks intrigued at the clothes. Then she frowns a bit. 

"I uhh...I don't really wear dresses...umm..." Pidge says. Romelle looks at her unimpressed and scoffs. 

"Wow, you'd rather dress in men clothing? What a lady--" Pidge crosses her arms and raises a brow. Romelle chuckles warrily. 

"Sorry..." The wardrobe says. Pidge rolls her eyes then sits down. 

"Also, I'm not going to dinner." Romelle blinks in surprise. 

"Oh, but you must!" Romelle said. That's when a clock enters the room, or rather Keith. 

"Ahem, ahem, ahem. Dinner…is served--" Pidge looks him up and down. 

"How much do i have to bet to guess your name is actually Keith?" The clock blinked in surprise. 

"Excuse me, what now...??"

* * *

Lance was walking on all fours as he was pacing the fire, waiting. Allura and Hunk were watching him, worried. 

"What’s taking so long? I told him to come down. Why isn’t he here yet?! What is he?? A bride?!" Hunk snorted. 

"Not really one to talk when you think of how much YOU used to care for skincare and it took you double to get anywhere." Hunk said, rolling his eyes. Allura smacked Hunk with her snout. 

"Oh, try to be patient, sir. The-- ...boy....has lost his father and his freedom all in one day." Allura said, making an awkward pause to stop herself from calling Pidge a girl. 

"Maybe....they are the key to our freedom. Love doesn't necessarily need a boy and a girl...Take Keith for example! He's all over Shiro and when he can? He's always in the kitchen talking with that stove. I cook better than him....Haven't you thought about it?" Hunk says. Lance groans. 

"Of course i have! I'm not a fool!....Or at least that big of a fool." Lance says. 

"Good. You fall in love with him, he falls in love with you, and--Poof!--the spell is broken! We’ll be human again by midnight!" Allura clicks her tongue in disapproval at Hunk's idea. 

"Oh, it’s not that easy, Hunk. These things take time...Pidge takes time." Lance and Hunk looked at her with a quirked brow. 

"He....is more into the....personality, I suppose i could call it." Allura said, thinking about Pidge. 

"But the rose has already begun to wilt!" Hunk said. Lance growled at that. 

"It’s no use. He’s so... and I’m so…well, look at me!" Lance said, pointing at himself. Allura and Hunk looked saddened at Lance. Allura sighed. 

"Oh, you must help him to see past all that." Allura said to him. Lance looked away, pouting. 

"I don't know how." Lance admitted. Allura jumped off the fireplace and on the table. 

"Well, you can start by making yourself more presentable. Straighten up, try to act like a gentleman." Hunk jumped off as well and added:

"Ah yes, when he comes in, give him a dashing, debonair smile. Come, come. Show me the smile." Lance tries to smile but it's a wonky grin. Hunk snorts. 

"But don’t frighten the poor thing." Allura says. 

"Impress him with your rapier wit."

"But be gentle."

"Shower him with compliments."

"But be sincere."

"And above all…" The two objects looked at each other as Lance had been going back and forth between them. 

"You must control your temper!" They both said to Lance, which startled him a bit. Lance, Allura and Hunk all looked at the door to see a grumbling Keith. 

"That boy is a demon! How did he guess i am Keith?! And who said that's the most unattractive name! Stupid freaking--" 

"Keith!" All three of them called and the clock jumped up in surprise. He immediately looked at them and chuckled warrily. 

"Right...about him...Well, actually, he’s in the process of, uh, um, circumstances being what they are, uh--… Fuck this. He’s not coming." Keith said, deflating. Lance's eyes widen. 

"WHAT?!" He starts walking out, the objects giving chase. As they go after him, Hunk smacks Keith over the head. 

"Lance! Let’s not be hasty!" Keith says, but Lance was already jumping from the stairs onto the first floor and going to Pidge's room. 

"I thought I told you to come down to dinner!" Lance yells as he bangs the door, his animal instincts coming in. 

"Chill big bad wolf, I'm just not hungry. Sheesh." Pidge says, falling out of bed at the strength of the bang and voice. God, she was frightened. Lance snarls as he realizes she was making fun of him. 

"You’ll come out or I’ll…I’ll…I’ll break down the door!" Pidge blinked in surprise. 

"Wait...Why would you break down your own doors? Also...Isn't that a bit invading of privacy? Just asking..." Pidge said. Lance was growing irritated at her sarcasm. 

"Lance, I could be wrong, but that may not be the best way to win the boy’s affection." Hunk said. Lance frowned. 

"At least...ATTEMPT to be a gentleman?" Keith says. Lance frowns even more. 

"But he is being so…difficult! How can a midget have this much sarcasm!?" Pidge snorted as she heard the last part, thanks to Lance raising his voice. She covered her mouth to muffle her laugh. The beast actually had some humour. Marvelous. 

"Gently, gently." Allura chidded at Lance to calm him down. 

"Will you come down to dinner?" Lance asked in the most monotone voice. 

"Nah." Pidge said. Lance turned to the objects and pointed at the door. Keith snorted and turned away. Allura and Hunk smacked him at the same time. 

"Eh-eh-eh-eh! Suave, genteel." Hunk said. Lance rolled his eyes. 

"It would give me great pleasure if you would join me for dinner." Allura made a 'go on' motion. Lance rolled his eyes again. 

"Please." Pidge blinked in surprise from behind the door. 

"Sorry...No, thank you." Pidge said. Lance lost his temper again. 

"You can’t stay in there forever!" Lance says. Pidge snorts. 

"Says who?" Lance growled. 

"Fine! Then go ahead and STARVE!!!! If he doesn’t eat with me, then he doesn’t eat at all!" Lance commanded to the objects. He stormed off.

"Oh, dear. That didn’t go very well at all, did it?" Allura said. Hunk nodded. Keith turned to Hunk. 

"Hunk, stand watch at the door and inform me at once if there is the slightest change." Hunk and Allura looked at each other, unimpressed. 

"Yeah yeah. Whatever." Hunk said, rolling his eyes. Allura sighed. 

"Well, we might as well go downstairs and start cleaning up." Keith says, pulling Allura after him. Meanwhile, Lance was destroying things in his room, already destroyed enough. That's when he started growing angry again. 

"I ask nicely, but he refuses. What a…what does he want me to do--beg?" Lance asks himself. Then he looks at a painting of his family. They still don't know about the curse...they live overseas. Lance sighs. 

"This isn't who I am...What am I doing? Am i seriously letting him starve?...But i can't go apologize..." He says, thinking about his pride. He picks up the mirror. 

"Show him to me." Lance says. The mirror fills with fog and suddenly Pidge and Romelle appear on Pidge's bed. 

"But the master’s not so bad once you get to know him. Why don’t you give him a chance?" Romelle said. Pidge scoffed. 

"I don’t want to get to know him. I don’t want to have anything to do with him!" Pidge says, thinking about her father. Lance sets the mirror down and slumps down, his ears sloping down as well.

"I’m just fooling myself. He’ll never see me as anything…but a monster. It’s hopeless." Another petal falls off the rose. An impending doom was eminent. 

* * *

Pidge silently opened the door. She started tippy toeing out of the room. Behind a curtain were Hunk and Shay, making out. Pidge scrunches her nose up as she hears them. 

"Oh, no!"

"Oh, yes!"

"Oh, no!"

"Oh, yes, yes, yes!" The two get out from the curtains just as Pidge was taking the corner. Shay, a feather duster, came out first. 

"I’ve been burnt by you before!" Shay says, amused. Hunk chuckles and pulls her to him, bending her down, until he sees Pidge taking the corner. He gasps in horror and drops Shay. 

"Oof!" Shay says as she falls on the floor. Hunk's eyes widen. 

"Shit! He has emerged!" Hunk said panicked. Shay looks with wide eyes at Hunk as well. Pidge was now going down the stairs. She entered the kitchen only to find Keith, Allura and Coran together. Keith frowns. 

"Oh, it's you." Keith says, rolling his eyes. Hunk rushes in as well, with Shay behind him. 

"Oh heyyyy. Keith guy! 'sup?" Pidge says with a smirk on her face. Allura snorts as Coran chuckles. keith frowns. The stove laughs as well. 

"That is a new one, eh??" The stove says playfully. 

"Shirooooo..." Keith whines. Pidge looks around. 

"Welll...i won't keep you all up and stuff...I'll just take some bread and leave." Allura gasps. 

"You are hungry?! You are?! He’s hungry. Stoke the fire, break out the silver, wake the china!" Allura says excited. Pidge puts her hands up. 

"There really is no need--" 

"Remember what Lance said?!" Keith asked. Pidge raised a brow. 

"Lance? So that's his name. Intriguing. Welp, I'll just go-- okkkk i'm being dragged back by a clothes hanger." Pidge says, unimpressed at this point, to be thrown back in the kitchen. 

"Oh, pish posh. I’m not going to let the poor child go hungry." Pidge spurted. 

"Child?! I'm 19!" Allura and the others looked surprised at bit. 

"Huh...So i guess our plan isn't illegal after all..." Hunk whispered to Allura. Allura smacked him over the head. 

"Oh, all right. Glass of water, crust of bread, and then--" Keith tried to say as Pidge nodded along but Hunk interrupted him. 

"I am surprised at you. He’s not our prisoner. He’s our guest! We must make him feel welcome here." Pidge and Keith both looked at each other. 

"Hey, Keith...wasn't I supposed to be a prisoner...??" Pidge asks, leaning down. 

"Yeahhh...I don't know either." Keith says. Pidge gets pulled on her feet and then shoved on a chair in the dining hall. Multiple silverware, china, plates and trays of food flew in and Pidge tried many things out of them, to Hunk's and Shiro's excitement. Pidge chuckles as she eats. 

"Haven't ate something so good since my mama became ill..." Pidge says, twirling her fork around. Allura, Hunk and Keith stiffen as Coran gasps. 

"But what did you use to eat??" Pidge shrugs. 

"Nothing fancy. A stew here and there...maybe a stake if I went hunting." Allura frowns. 

"Hunting?! A girl?!" Pidge face-palms. 

"A GIRL?!" Hunk, Keith and Shiro all say, Shiro peeking from the kitchen to listen on the conversation. 

"Allura!....Yeah...I'm a girl..." Pidge says, leaning back in her chair. 

"But- But...In the tower--" Pidge shrugs. 

"Didn't bother." Keith's and Hunk's jaws fell open. 

"My real name is Katie...Katie Holt." Pidge said as she took another fork-full. 

"Now..." She pushes the plate away and her eyes glim with sheer curiosity and love for adventure. Hunk, Keith and Allura didn't miss it. The same glim used to be in Lance's eyes. 

"It’s my first time in an enchanted castle so--" The objects started to panic. 

"Enchanted? Who said anything about the castle being enchanted?" Hunk asks, sweating bullets. Pidge scoffs and pushes her glasses up. 

"Oh pleaseeee. A beast? Talking objects? There's no way these are mechanisms. Kind of hard to comprehend the fact that I am in something that can't quite be scientifically explained but...It is exciting!" Pidge says, letting her head lean on her hands. 

"I’d like to look around, if that’s all right." Pidge asks with a childish grin. Everyone was surprised at that. 

"I could give you a tour, i guess..." Keith says, touched by her childish demeanor and Hunk smiled. 

"Follow us, m'lady." Pidge snorted and got up. The tour was interesting. As soon as Keith found out she can comprehend big words? It was over for Allura and Hunk. 

"As you can see, the pseudo facade was stripped away to reveal a minimalist rococo design. Note the unusual inverted vaulted ceilings. This is yet another example of the neoclassical baroque period, and as I always say, if it’s not baroque, don’t fix it! Ha ha ha. Now then, where was I?" Pidge was actually paying attention to the places Keith was pointing out. 

"Huh...What an interesting architecture. Who planned all of this?" Pidge said. Keith sighed. 

"I wish i could say me...But somehow? It was Lance." Pidge blinked in surprise. 

"Lance...? Woah..." She then turned to see an interesting staircase. As Keith kept talking, she headed that way. Keith, Hunk and Allura cut her way. 

"What's here??" Pidge asked. They all were sweating bullets now. 

"Where? There? Oh, nothing. Absolutely nothing of interest at all in the West Wing. Dusty, dull, very boring." Keith blabels. Pidge quirks a brow. 

"So THAT is the so called 'west wing'." Pidge says, tapping her chin. Hunk smacks Keith over the head. 

"Nice going, dumbass." Hunk says, frowning. 

"I wonder what he’s hiding up there." Pidge says. Allura chuckles warily. 

"Hiding? The master is hiding nothing!" Allura says. Pidge rolls her eyes.

"Then it wouldn’t be forbidden. I am a girl but I am not dumb. I am the daughter of an inventor after all. It runs in my genes." Pidge says, a bit annoyed at the fact they tried such a cheap shot with her. She steps over them, but they dash up and block her again. Pidge was unimpressed. 

"Perhaps you would like to see something else. We have exquisite tapestries dating all the way back to---" Pidge steps over them again. Allura's gears were turning when- 

"How about visiting the library??" Allura asks. Pidge freezes. Hunk and Keith perk up. 

"You have a library?" Pidge asks, her eyes gleaming again. That caught her attention, alright. Allura smiled. 

"Oh yes! Indeed!" Keith and Hunk then ruined it. 

"With books!"

"Scads of books!"

"Mountains of books!"

"Forests of books!"

"Cascades!"

"Cloudbursts!"

"Swamps of books!"

"More books than you’ll ever be able to read in a lifetime! Books on every subject ever studied, by every author who ever set pen to paper… Ha ha ha!" Hunk, Keith and Allura begin marching off, and Pidge begins to follow, but her curiosity overtakes her, and she turns back to the West Wing. Her excitement begins to dwindle, though, when she enters the hallway leading to Beast’s lair. As she walks down the hall, she stops to look in a mirror that has been shattered into several pieces, each one reflecting her concerned look. She reaches the end of the hall and finds a closed door with gargoyle handles. She takes a deep breath, then reaches out and opens the door. She was in the lair, where Pidge begins to explore. She is truly shocked by everything she sees. She wanders around, looking, and knocks over a table, but she catches it before it crashes to the floor. She then turns her head and sees a shredded picture on the wall. We can only see part of a portrait. Pidge reaches out and lifts the shreds of the picture to reveal the prince. A beautiful boy with dark hair and beautiful blue eyes, a handsome face and dark skin. He surely would make girls go wild...He also looked like a goof and a flirt. Then she turns her head and sees the rose under the bell jar. She walks over to it, her eyes transfixed. She reaches out, then lifts off the jar, leaving the rose unprotected. She reaches up, brushes back a strand of hair, then reaches out to touch the rose. As she nears it, a shadow falls over her. Lance has been on the balcony, and sees her. He jumps back into the room,then slams the jar back on the rose. He then turns his attention to Pidge. 

"Why did you come here?" Lance asks, growling. Pidge backs away a bit. 

"I’m-- I'm sorry--" 

"I warned you never to come here!" Lance says, growing angrier. 

"I didn’t mean any harm." Pigde says, trying to reason with him. Lance was deep in his anger again. 

"Do you realize what you could have done?" Lance asks, frowning. Pidge gulps. He starts trashing the furniture. Pidge was quick to duck and dodge. 

"Get out!!!!" Pidge dodges a flying chair and slides out in the halls. Lance then realizes what he has done. Shit-- Pidge was still running in the halls. She took a cloak and jumped down the stairs. Hunk, Keith and Allura stared with wide eyes at her depiction of athletics and at the fact she was heading towards the door. 

"Where are you going?!" Coran asked, hopping on the stairs as well. Pidge snarled as she opens the door. 

"Promise or no promise, I can’t stay here another minute!" She rushed outside. 

"Oh no, wait, please! Please wait!" Hunk pleaded, but the doors already closed. Pidge hopped on her horse in the stables and was now exiting the gates. Pidge was riding Philippe when suddenly he started jumping on his back legs. 

"Woahhh! Easy there-" She froze as she heard multiple growls and looked ahead, only to see wolves. She turned the horse around and gave him a nudge to go faster. She managed to slam one of the wolves into a tree as she was riding. Then she went on ice, making another wolf fall in the water, unable to swim free. But she was now wet. The chilly air of the winter was freezing. But the wolves managed to cut her way. Philippe ended up tied up and Pidge thrown off the horse in the snow. She choked as she hit the ground too hard and probably broke her rib. The wolves were trying to bite Philippe. Pidge however wouldn't let that happen. She was armed with a branch and started fighting. But they were regrouping faster than she could hit...she didn't have time to untie Philippe. One of the wolves broke the stick and they leaped, grabbing her cloak. She used it to wrap the wolf's head and managed to escape his hold. But she was disarmed and the wolves were closing in. She shut her eyes tight. But then a huge roar erupted through the woods. 

Lance leaped and started fighting off the wolves. One rips a hole in the beast’s shoulder, and the others focus their attack on that spot. Finally, Lance throws a wolf against a tree, knocking it out. The others turn and run in fear. He turns back to Pidge, looks at her despairingly, then collapses. Pidge scrambls on her feet and goes to him. Curse her kind nature. She couldn't just leave him in the cold like this. He would die. Fine! She will go back. She promised, after all. She managed to pick him up and get him on the horse. Lance groans. Pidge rubbed his head, next to his ear. 

"Yeah yeah...I know...I owe ya for that, come on." Lance purrs satisfiedly at the feeling of her touch and she looks away, a slight blush on her cheeks at that. Next thing Lance knew, he was on a chair in the living room as Pidge was pouring some warm water in a pot for his wounds. he was sitting there, watching as Pidge untied her vest that she usually wore so she looked like a guy. She then rolled her sleeves and looked at the baggy material. 

"Curses." She muttered as she looked at her vest and picked her belt from there. She tied it around her waist and- 

"HOLD UP! YOU'RE A GIRL?!" Pidge face-palmed. 

"1. Yes. 2. Just didn't bother to correct you. 3. I'm Katie Holt. Nickname: Pidge. My brother gave it to me. End of story." She said as she knelt down and took a cloth, dipped it in water and then crawled closer. Lance moved his arm away from her and started licking it. Pidge smacked him in the face with the cloth. 

"Don't do that! That could cause 1. an infection 2. you getting bacteria from that wolf and god knows what he has and 3. You making it worse. You're no dog for your silva to actually help the wound." Pidge says, putting her hands on her hips. Lance frowns.

"Just…hold still." Pidge says as she finally gets to put the rag on the wound. Lance roars. Pidge is unphased but the objects all hide at the outburst. Pidge smacks Lance over the head and he ends up choking on his roar that turns to an actual human like scream. The objects watch, surprised. Lance then pouts, frowning. 

"That...HURTS!" 

"If you’d hold still, it wouldn’t hurt as much." Pidge says, crossing her arms. Lance smirks, as a good counterpoint came to his mind. 

"Well if you hadn’t run away, this wouldn’t have happened!" Lance says. Pidge scoffs.

"If you hadn’t throw your furniture at me, I wouldn’t have run away. You're lucky I can duck and dodge." Pidge said, narrowing her eyes. The objects hissed. Lance glared at them. He opens his mouth to respond, but has to stop and think of a good line. 

"Well you shouldn’t have been in the West Wing!" Pidge scoffs again.

"Well you should learn to control your temper! I may be a midget but i already smacked you twice for that shitty temper of yours." Lance blinks in surprise and snorts, covering his snout with his other hand. 

"Y-You heard that?" Pidge snorts as well and starts chuckling. 

"How can a midget hold so much sarcasm? Pfft- Best line in history. Made my day a bit better." Pidge said, still giggling. Lance's brows raised, intrigued by the fact she was laughing. 

"You're...not...mad?" Pidge started howling with laughter. 

"Mad?! No! I grew up with an older brother! How could i be mad for such a small insult? I was called worse on a daily basis!" She said, chuckling, as she gently rubbed his wound. Lance hissed and Pidge eyed him. She frowned then perked up. 

"There was one time when i wanted to get an apple from the top of the tree. But i wasn't dumb enough to not realize that it could be highly dangerous, you know?" Lance perked up, forgetting about the pain in the wound. The objects watched with wide eyes. 

"I remember how i tricked him to go, calling him a pussy. In the end, he got me the apple and fell from the tree. I got one good ass whooping from my mama for that stunt. My father? Hah! He was proud over the fact i managed to trick my brother by using his ego and called me sharp minded." Pidge said. Lance chuckled. 

"Oh...And thanks...For saving my life and all of that. I know it wasn't worth it and--" Lance frowned. 

"Of course it was! I won't just leave a human to die in the woods! I...I may seem heartless but...I'm not....And thanks for saving my life as well....and not abandoning me in the woods." Pidge snorted. 

"Guess we're even huh?" Lance chuckled. 

"My family is overseas...they...they just write." Pidge nodded. 

"Well...My mom and brother are in the city, since my mother grew ill a while back...she is doing a bit better but we realllyyyy need the money to help her. Sooo dad is an inventor...mom researches plants and my brother? He is an inventor as well. I guess you could call me an inventor as well if you want but...I'm not on their level. Plus...Girls aren't supposed to read or...or think..." Pidge said, chuckling. Lance looks at her surprised. 

"What dickhead would say THAT?!" Pidge snorted and started howling with a bubbly laughter that made Lance blush a bit. 

"Oh MY GOD! Yes, he really is a dickhead. A hunter named Lotor. He's got good looks but he lacks in brains. Also i bet he has a ..." Pidge brings her thumb and index close and Lance spurts and starts laughing as well. But a human laugh. The objects perked up again. 

"Ouchhhh. What a jackass." Pidge smiled at Lance then then took off the rag. 

"Guess distracting ya worked. It doesn't sting eh? Just a bit of psychology. Taking your mind off of the wound should have at least made it bearable." Pidge said as she proudly got up. 

"Hey wait-- uhh...i still have a question." Lance said as Pidge was looking for a bandage. 

"Hmm??" Lance looks down, blushing in embarrassment. 

"W-why is your nickname Pidge...?" Pidge snorted. 

"Because my mind always flies too far away for me to reach...Plus...My brother said i'm an ugly bird. So he went with PIDGEON. And given my height? It just made sense." Pidge said with a shrug. Lance watched as she walked away then stopped. She put her hand on her shoulder and popped something into place like it was normal. Lance scrunched his face up in horror. 

"Like i said, older brother. Let's bandage you up then." 


	4. Chapter 4

"I don’t usually leave the asylum in the middle of the night, but they said you’d make it worth my while." Sendak said, frowning. Lotor pulls out a sack of gold and tosses it in front of him. He takes out a piece, scrapes it on his chin and continues.

"Aah, I’m listening." Sendak says, smirking with greed at the piece of gold. 

"It’s like this. I’ve got my heart set on marrying Katie, but she needs a little persuasion." Lotor said. Morvok snorted. 

"Turned him down flat!" Lotor smacked Morvok over the head for the comment. 

"Everyone knows her father’s a lunatic. He was in here tonight raving about a beast in a castle…" Lotor said. 

"Sam is harmless." Sendak stated. Lotor scoffed. 

"The point is, Katie would do anything to keep him from being locked up." Lotor said. Morvok nodded. 

"Yeah, even marry him!" Morvok said. Lotor gives the smaller man a threatening look. Sendak frowns. 

"So you want me to throw her father in the asylum unless she agrees to marry you?" The two nod at Sendak. 

"Despicable." But then a cruel smile graced his lips. 

"I love it!" Sendak stated. All three of them smirked. But as they were going to Pidge's house, Sam Holt was getting ready and leaving so he could find his daughter. When they got there? He was already gone. 

"Oh, well, I guess it’s not gonna work after all." Morvok stated as Lotor frowned at the empty house. 

"They have to come back sometime, and when they do, we’ll be ready for them. Morvok, don’t move from that spot until Katie and her father come home." Lotor picked him up and shoved him in the snow. Morvok frowned as he was left behind. 

"Asshole..." 

* * *

Lance was up on the balcony, watching Pidge. He has never seen a girl act like this before. Well read, playfull, kind...He was sure women were all pretty faces. But Pidge was so much more. He was intrigued. It sparked something in him. And that smile too. 

"I’ve never felt this way about anyone. I want to do something for her!" Lance said, getting a bit giddy. The objects watched the prince deflate in a matter of seconds. 

"But....what?" Keith snorted. 

"Well, there’s the usual things--flowers, chocolates, promises you don’t intend to keep--" Hunk smacked Keith over the head. Allura butted in. 

"Ahh, no no. It has to be something very special. Something that sparks her interest!" Allura said. Hunk then lit up, quite literally. 

"Wait a minute! The library." And so, Lance was now leading Pidge towards a door. She was looking at him, amused. 

"Pidge, there’s something I want to show you. And i hope you will like it." Pidge raised both brows. 

"Damn, princey getting shy? It must be something big." Pidge said with a playful smile. Lance smiled as well, blushing. 

"But first, you have to close your eyes." She quirks a brow up at that. Lance sighs. 

"Just go along with it. I want it to be a surprise." Pidge puts her hands up in defense and smiles as she closes her eyes. Lance takes her hands and almost freezes at how warm and small they are. But he keeps leading her in the library. He rushes to the windows and pulls some curtains open. 

"Can i open them now? You're making me giddy as well!" Pidge said, chuckling a bit. 

"NOW!" He says, smiling. As Pidge opens her eyes she freezes. Her eyes widen in awe and excitement as the library is so big and filled with books, there's barely any walls visible. 

"This...THIS IS AMAZING! LANCE, HOLY SHIT!" Pidge says, looking around and going to the center of the room. Lance was jumping from one leg on to the other. 

"You--you like it?" Pidge laughs. 

"Are you kidding?! I haven't seen so many books in my whole life! I LOVE IT!" Pidge said, turning around with a beaming smile. Lance felt his soul light up in fire-works. 

"Then it's yours!" Lance said, happily. Pidge snorted. 

"Dork! You can't just gift to me all of this! It's unfair!" Lance smiled. 

"I insist! I don't really read...I don't really remember how..." Lance said, rubbing his neck. Pidge blinked in surprise and smiled softly. 

"That's ok. No shame in that. I can teach you. We can read together!" Pidge said with a warm inviting tone. Lance felt like he could melt in a puddle right then and there. 

* * *

Pidge and Lance were having breakfast. Pidge was using her spoon and then she looks up to see Lance, at the other end of the table eating...well...like a beast. Pidge blinked in surprise at that and raised a brow, amused. Lance stopped and looked away. He then tried to use the spoon as well. His big paws couldn't hold it properly and his big snout wasn't helping either. Pidge snorted. Lance slumped down at that and the objects frowned. 

"Don't do something you're not comfortable with for my sake! You can't possibly hold a spoon with those...The claws and size won't let you!" Lance's ears fell back and Pidge smiled warmly. 

"If you're not using silverware, than fuck that shit. Here. Me and my brother used to do this to get away from the table faster." Pidge said with a small wink. Lance perked up as she picked the bowl up and started sipping from it. :ance did the same and was surprised to find out it was way cleaner and efficient than before. Keith frowned. 

"That is not very ladylike, you know?" Pidge rolled her eyes. 

"Oh, shut up." She said as she fired a ball of her food at Keith and it went right in his mouth. Lance snorted. Hunk and Allura howled with laughter. 

"Hey!" Keith said, after he swallowed the food. Pidge winked. 

"It's a straight shot, eh? Here." She fired another one, right between his eyes. The clock fell off the table. 

"Guess he ran out of time." Pidge said smugly as she leaned back in her chair. Lance howled with laughter. But not the one the objects were used to. But human-like laughter. Pidge soon joined in with giggles, then they were both laughing. 

* * *

Pidge was watching as Lance was looking at some birds in the garden. It was snowy but not all birds left for the winter. Pidge started heading his way and smirked as she crouched down next to him. 

"Want to get the birds to sit in your hands?" Pidge said with a childish smile. Lance blinked in surprise. 

"You can....do that...?" Pidge snorted. 

"Yes. With the magical power offff~" She dropped some seeds in his hands. 

"Bird seeds." She said with a smile. Lance snorted. He tried to chase the birds. Pidge looked with a raised brow. 

"Ummm?" Pidge said, amused. Lance turned to her, confused. 

"Why do they keep running?" Pidge snorted. 

"Aight...come on." Pidge knelt down and sprinkled a bit of seeds towards his hands. Slowly, the birds approached. Lance lit up. Soon enough, he was covered in birds. 

"Awww~" Pidge said, smiling. One sat on Pidge's head. Lance snorted. 

"Hah! She thought you're a nest!" Pidge's eyes widened. 

"A nest-- A NEST?! WHY YOU!!" She picked up a snowball and threw it. It hit Lance right between his eyes. Lance groaned and wiped the snow off. Pidge laughed at him. Lance snarled and started trying to throw some after her. She dodged, rolling in the snow and ducking for cover behind a tree. Lance rolled his eyes. 

"Show off!" He said as he picked a huge snowball and lifted it over his head. Pidge smirked. 

"Dumb move~" She chided, being on the other side of the tree. Lance froze as he realized his mistake and with one snowball his huge one shattered and fell on him. Pidge's bubbly laughter rang through the gardens. Lance's face felt warm and his stomach swarmed with butterflies. 

"Well...would you look at that~" Hunk said, smiling, from the window, to his fellow objects. Keith sighed and shook his head. 

"Love Birds." 

* * *

Pidge was reading in an arm-chair. Lance was watching her from the hallway. He fidgeted, his tail between his legs, as he watched her eyes slowly go along the lines for a while until she would turn the page. The light of the fireplace making her look even more beautiful and it would lightly frame her glasses. Hunk looked at Lance and chuckled. 

"Go, you dummy!" Hunk tripped Lance and the beast fell inside the room. Pidge's brows raised up at the sound and she immediately looked in his direction. 

"Lance?" The beast chuckled. 

"U-Uh...heyyyy~ Pidgeonnn~" Pidge scrunched her face up at the nickname, but she was clearly amused. 

"What brings you here?" Lance shrugged and rubbed his neck. Pidge smiled at his dorky act. Her cheeks lightly turning pink. 

"Want to read with me...?" She asked, smiling. Lance beamed and they both sat on the couch. Lance sat next to her and she started reading to him. Her voice, soft. 

"Two households, both alike in dignity...In fair Verona, where we lay our scene, From ancient grudge break to new mutiny, Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean--" Lance listened to her as if she was the best thing in the world...and to him? It wasn't that far from the truth.

* * *

"Ummm...You sure you know how to hunt??" Lance asked, concerned. Pidge raised a brow and twirled her pen-knife. 

"What do you mean.??" Lance chuckled and rubbed his neck. 

"Well...you know...Since you're a girl." Pidge's eyes widened. She looked at him unimpressed and threw her pen-knife towards him. He dodged. 

"HEY-!" Suddenly, the small chandelier above them fell right on him. Pidge raised a brow and smirked. 

"Touchee..." Said Lance as he stuck his hand out, pointing at her. She smiled proudly and put her hands on her hips. She bit her lip as Lance was rustling himself out of the chandelier and she laughed. 

"Here...another trick." She took the pen-knife and cut one rope, making the whole thing fall to his feet. Lance's eyes widened in awe. 

"You're smart." He said, tapping his chin. She laughed. 

"I know...COME ON!" 

* * *

Lance had been struggling with reading time. She noticed. He never had time to actually stay and look at the small lines...so Pidge decided to make it easier. She stayed up the whole night to do this. 

"Hey...Lance? Wanna see your new clock??" Pidge asked with a bright smile. Lance raised a brow as he froze with his bowl above his head. 

"Eh?" He asked. Pidge snorted. 

"Here." She slid the square device towards him. His eyes widened. Every minute, the paper would slide and reveal a new number. Lance gasped. 

"WOAH! I DON'T NEED MULLET ANYMORE!" Lance said, picking the small thing. Keith frowned. 

"Hey!" Hunk stared with wide eyes. 

"You...made this?" Pidge chuckled and rubbed her neck. Lance eyed her in awe. 

"Well...yeah...But it's no biggie really...." Lance spurted. 

"YOU KIDDING?! THIS IS GENIUS!!" Lance said. He got up and hugged her. Pidge flushed. His hug wasn't strong. It was light and he really tried not to squeeze her. Pidge smiled and hugged him back. The objects all stared at each other with bright smiles. The two were falling in love.

* * *

"Right then! You all know why we're here. We have exactly 12 hours, 36 minutes, and 15 seconds to create the most magical, spontaneous, romantic atmosphere known to man or beast. Or 'beast'.." No one laughed at Keith's pun as he showed them a plan. 

"Right. Need I remind you that if the last petal falls from this rose, the spell will never be broken! Very well. You all know your assignments. Half of you to the West Wing, half of you to the East Wing, the rest of you, come with me." No one payed attention and all the objects left in different directions. 

"Hoho, lighten up Keith and let nature take its course!" Hunk said, patting the clock on the back. Coran laughed. 

"It's obvious there's a spark between them." Allura nodded at Coran's words. 

"Yes yes yes... But there's no harm in fanning the flames. You know, a little. Besides, they must fall in love tonight if we ever expect to be human again..." Keith said. They all sighed. 

"Aaah...human again...I'll be cooking again~" Hunk said. Shay giggled. 

Meanwhile, Lance and Pidge were in the library, Lance sitting with his head in his hand, listening to Pidge read. 

"...For there never was a story of more woe than this of Juliet and her Romeo." She said, smiling. Lance sighed. 

"Could you read it again?" he asked. Pidge raised a brow and looked at the book. She pushed it towards him. 

"Well, here. Why don't you read it to me?" She asked. Lance scrunched his face up. 

"Uhhh...Alright. Hmm... Um... I-I can't." He said, his head falling slightly. Pidge raised a brow. 

"You mean you never learned?" She asked, confused. Lance shook his head. 

"I learned, a little. It's just been so long..." Pidge smiled softly. 

"Hey...It's ok~ Well here, I'll help you. Let's start...here!" She put her finger on the first line of the first page. Lance frowned. 

"You sure...?" Pidge scoffed. 

"When wasn't I?" He sighed and narrowed his eyes, sticking his tongue out in concentration. 

"Here. Ok, twoh...?" Pidge snorted. Lance frowned. 

"Sorry...It's two." Pidge said. Lance chuckled warrily, embarrassed. 

"Two, I knew that. Two households, both alike in dignity--" Pidge smiled, proud. 

* * *

"Tonight is the night!" Keith said. Lance sighed and rubbed his neck. Lance is in the tub getting washed up for the big night with Pidge. Hunk is there with him as well. 

"I’m not sure I can do this..." Lance said. Hunk gasped. 

"You don’t have time to be timid. You must be bold, buddy! You're LANCE!" Hunk said. Lance blushed a bit. 

"There will be music. Romantic candlelight, provided myself, and when the time is right, you confess your love." Keith added. Lance blushed even more. 

"Yes, I con-- I-I-- No, I can’t....I can't!!" Lance said. The two objects looked at each other, unimpressed. 

"You care for the girl, don’t you?" Keith asked. Lance looked away. 

"More than anything..." He said. Hunk smiled. 

"Well then, you must tell her!" A coat rack has been cutting Lance's hair. It finishes and steps back. Hunk and Keith freeze and started chuckling. Lance looks in the mirror, unimpressed. 

"Voila. You look so…so…" Hunk tried to say. Keith snorted. 

"Stupid." Keith added. Lance rolled his eyes. 

"Shut up, Mullet." The coat rack begins to cut and chop again. Allura enters smiling.

"Ahem ahem ahem. Your lady awaits. Hoo hoo hoo~ Me and Romelle did a wonderful job, if i may say so myself~" Allura added. 

He goes towards the grand staircase, where Pidge descends from the West Wing side in a glittering greenish blue ball gown. She reaches the landing and looks up at Lance, who is standing at the top of the stairs in his dress clothes. He Freezes. She looked stunning, her hair all dolled up and the make-up (not that she wasn't a natural beauty), and her eyes...without those glasses he could see her eyes and oh boy was he getting lost in them. He is nudged on by Hunk from behind the curtain, and he descends and meets her at the landing. 

"I look stupid, don't I?" She asks, blushing. Lance chuckles. 

"I'd say you look stunning." She smiles as he extends his arm for her. Arm in arm, they descend the last section of stairs and continue on their way to dinner. They eat dinner when suddenly, another coat rack starts playing the violin. Pidge lights up and gets an idea. 

"Come on!" She says, smiling, as she gets up and pulls him off of his seat. Pidge and Lance have moved into the ballroom, where they move through a perfect dance sequence. Lance occasionally looks over at Hunk and Keith for their approval. They're both ecstatic at their chemistry. The two have now adjourned to the balcony under a starry night.

"Pidge? Are you happy here with me?" Lance asks. Pidge is hesitant. 

"Yes..." He looks saddened at her. She sighs. 

"If only I could see my father again, just for a moment. I miss him so much..." Pidge says, biting her lip. Lance gives her a sad look, then he lights up as he gets an idea. 

"There is a way..." The two then walk to Lance's old room, or his 'lair' if you'd like. 

"This mirror will show you anything, anything you wish to see." Lance says, showing her a mirror.She hesitantly picks it up and sighs. 

"I wish to see my father!" She demands. Fogs starts forming inside the glass and her father appears. Sam Holt was fallen in the woods, coughing and lost. Pidge was shocked and Lance looks at her with concern.

"Papa. Oh, no. He’s sick, he may be dying. And he’s all alone-- Oh God..." She says, shaking her head in disbelief. Lance frowns as he remembers his family. Then he remembers how much he cares for Pidge...He looks at the rose and sighs. 

"Then… you-you must go to him." He says. Pidge's eyes widen. 

"What did you say....?" Pidge asks, in disbelief. Lance looks away. 

"I release you. You are no longer my prisoner." Pidge blinks in surprise. 

"You mean…I’m free?" She asks in amazement. Lance still looks away. 

"Yes."

"Oh, thank you.... Hold on, Papa. I’m on my way." She turns to hand him the mirror, but he refuses with a sad smile. 

"Take it with you, so you’ll always have a way to look back, and remember me." Pidge frowns and smiles. 

"No...I will have a way to come back to you. I promise." She says, determinedly. Then she looks at him with a smile. 

"Thank you...for understanding how much he needs me." Pidge said. She starts rushing out. She quickly rushes out, her skirt flowing past Keith and Hunk. The two objects come in. 

"Well, 'your highness'. I must say everything is going just swimmingly. I knew you had it in you. Ha ha--" Keith said. 

"I let her go, Mullet..."

"Ha ha ha, yes. Splend-- You WHAT?!How could you do that?!" Lance looks at Keith with sad eyes. 

"I had to" Hunk shakes his head. 

"WHY?!" Lance turns to them with a sad smile. 

"Because, I love her..." The rest of the objects, when they heard, were shocked. 

"He did what?!?!" Shay asked. Romelle started fanning herself. 

"I feel sick." The wardrobe said. 

"Yes, I’m afraid it’s true..." Hunk added. 

"She’s going away?" Coran asked. 

"But he was so close." Shay says. 

"After all this time, he’s finally learned to love..." Allura says. Keith looks at Allura with hope. 

"That’s it, then. That should break the spell!" The tea-pot shook her head. 

"But it’s not enough. She has to love him in return..." Allura said. Shay looks saddened at everyone. 

"Now it's too late..." Lance was watching from above as Pidge was now back in her usual clothes and was riding Philippe out through the front gate. He roars in sorrow and anger. His roar turns into the sound of the wind amd gets forgotten...

Pidge is out in the snow, calling out "Papa?" Finally, she finds him face down in a snowbank. They return home, where Morvok is still waiting, disguised as a snowman. 

"Oh, they’re back!" Morvok says. Inside the house, her father opens his eyes. 

"Shh. It’s all right, Papa. I’m home." Pidge says. Her father sighs and hugs her. 

"I thought I’d never see you again." Her father says. Pidge smiles and hums. 

"I missed you so much." Her father breaks the hug. 

"But the beast. How did you escape?!" He asks in surprise.

"I didn’t escape, Papa. He let me go." Pidge said. 

"That horrible beast?" Her father asked. She frowned. 

"Don't be so rude! Someone stuck in solitude so long would seem horrible! But he’s different, now. He’s changed somehow..." Pidge said with a sad smile. 

"Are you su--" Suddenly, a sound came from Pidge's bag. She turns and looks at it with wide eyes as Coran manages to jump out. 

"Pidge, why’d you go away? Don’t you like us anymore?" Pidge's eyes widened at Coran's question. 

"No no no, my dear friend...My father needed me and--" There is a knocking at the door. Pidge opens it and Sendak stands on the porch.

"May I help you, sir?" Pidge asks. 

"I’ve come to collect your father." Pidge's eyes widened.

"Excuse me?" The man smirked. 

"Don’t worry, mademoiselle...We’ll take good care of him." He stepped aside to show the wagon parked in front of her house. Her mouth fell open in shock as she reads the text in red on it's side and sees the metal bars at it's window. 

"My father’s not crazy!" She said. A whole crowd was waiting outside the house. Pidge looked at everyone and saw Morvok emerging forth.

"He was raving like a lunatic. We all heard him, didn’t we!" Everyone agreed. Pitchforks and lit torches were all in the hands of the people outside. 

"No, I won’t let you!" She said, blocking the stairs to her porch. 

"Pidge?" Her father asks, coming from inside. Pidge turns to him, worriedly. 

"Dad--" But she is cut short by someone else. 

"Sam. Tell us again, old man, just how big was the beast?" Pidge hugs her father and snarls at Morvok. The smaller guy actually steps back. Sam Holt starts stuttering. 

"Well, he was…that is…enormous. I’d say at least eight, no more like ten feet..." The crowd laughed crudely at him. 

"Well, you don’t get much crazier than that!" Morvok said going around. 

"YOU SHUT YOUR MOUTH TO DIRTY WORM-!" Her father grabbed Pidge's hand and pulled her back. 

"Pidge..." She frowned and eyed Morvok again. 

"It’s true, I tell you!" Her father said, climbing down the stairs. Sendak waves his arms and the orderlies move in and pick up Sam.

"Get him out of here!" Morvok says. Pidge steps back in horror. Sendak starts walking towards the wagon. 

"NO! YOU CAN'T DO THIS!" Pidge says, grabbing him. He just pushes her off. 

"Poor, Katie. It’s a shame about your father." Lotor says, emerging from the shadows. She turns to him, frowning. 

"You know he’s not crazy, Lotor. Even you have more brain than this!" She said, pulling on his collar in desperation. 

"I might be able to clear up this little misunderstanding, if…" Pidge frowns as she looks at the smiling hunter. 

"If...what?" She asks. 

"If you marry me." He says. Pidge's eyes widen in horror and disgust. She...marrying...HIM?! 

"What?!" She asks, stepping back. But Lotor pulls her closer. 

"One little word, Katie. That’s all it takes~" Lotor says. Pidge pushes him off. 

"Never, you filthy brain-dead animal...You...you set this up, didn't you--" But she was cut short again. 

"Have it your way~" He turns and starts walking slowly, playing hard to get. 

"Pidge!" Her father calls.

"Let go of me!" Her father protests as they throw him in the wagon. Pidge rushes inside, remembering Lance's gift. It could save her father! 

"My father’s not crazy and I can prove it! Show me, Lance!" She says to the mirror as she emerges from inside the house. The magic mirror again shines, then produces the image of the still depressed beast, Lance. The crowd 'oohs' and 'aahs' at it.

"Is it dangerous?" Someone asks. Pidge shakes her head and comes closer to the crowd. 

"Oh, no, no. He’d never hurt anyone. Please, I know he looks vicious, but he’s really kind and gentle. He’s my friend." Pidge says, a small smile on her face. Lotor frowns. 

"If I didn’t know better, I’d think you had feelings for this- this monster!" Pidge scrunches her face up at Lotor. 

"He's not a monster, you imbecile. You are!" She says with narrowed eyes. Lotor pushes her to the ground and takes her mirror. 

"She’s as crazy as the old man! The beast will make off with your children! He’ll come after them in the night!" Pidge gets on her feet and tries to get the mirror back. 

"No!" She protests. Lotor pushes her out of his way and proceeds to show him to everyone. 

"We’re not safe ‘til his head is mounted on my wall! I say we kill the beast!" Pidge freezes and feels like the last words are a gut punch. The crowd cheered. What has she done...

"No, I won’t let you do this!" Pidge says. Lotor looks at her with narrowed eyes. 

"If you’re not with us, you’re against us. Bring the old man." Lotor says. They throw Sam Holt inside Pidge's basement and then he pushes Pidge inside. 

"We can’t have them running off to warn the creature!" Lotor adds. 

"LET US OUT YOU- YOU PIECE OF GARBAGE!" Pidge yells, hitting the door with her shoulder. A futile effort to escape. 

"We’ll rid the village of this beast. Who’s with me?" A chorus of "I am"s comes from the crowd. The group started leaving, following Gaston. The castle and it's residencers were in danger.


	5. Chapter 5

Pidge tried to open the window in vain. She snarled and hit the wall. 

"FUCK! I have to warn Lance..." She slides down and cradles her knees. 

"This is all my fault. Oh, Papa. What are we going to do--" Pidge's eyes widen as she realizes something. 

"Coran...OH CORAN! CORAN! CAN YOU HEAR ME?! I NEED YOU TO GO TO THE MACHINE OUTSIDE AND PULL THE LEVER!" Coran turns from the window only to see her father's latest invention, the axe shining as a lighting bolt strikes. He gasps. 

"Wowie. That should work!" The little cup jumps on the seat of the invention and pulls the lever, getting thrown off immediately. 

"Yes! Here we go!" Pidge said, pulling her father back. The invention crashes into the door, and a red cloud of smoke poofs out of the basement. Pidge and her father emerge from the wreckage to find Coran swinging on a loose spring. Pidge sighs. 

"Thank you. Now...LET'S GO!" 

* * *

"I knew it, I knew it was foolish to get our hopes up...." Keith said, pacing the room.

"Maybe it would have been better if she had never come at all." Hunk said with a sad sigh. Suddenly, Shay screeched at the window. Everyone rushed there and they all paled at the sight. 

"Invaders!" Keith said.

"Encroachers!" Hunk added.

"And they have the mirror!" Allura said at the end. 

"Warn the master!" Keith said. But soon enough, they saw a horse cutting through the crowd. 

"That's..." Keith started. Everyone else looked at each other with hope. 

"PIDGE!" 

* * *

The doors opened as she stepped with the horse inside, the people screaming and complaining. 

"KATIE! COME HERE THIS INSTANT!" Pidge looked at him. 

"Aww...you wanted a kiss from a housewife? Sorry...BUT YOU CAN KISS MY ASS!" The doors closed and as pulled down the giant wooden plank to stop them. The objects come rushing to her. 

"PIDGE!" The cup coughs as it emerges from her bag. 

"And Coran. Thank you." Allura gasps. 

"That's where you have been you little--" Pidge cuts her off. 

"Not. Now. Where is Lance?" She says. The objects all look saddened. 

"He won't listen to us...not even open the door..." Pidge frowns. 

"Fine...we'll have to protect him instead. Fucking hell-" She looks outside the window only to see the people bringing a huge log. 

"Oh shit--" A huge bang came and the doors bent. 

"THE DOORS! NOW!" They all rush and hold the doors. Different objects come to help. Pidge frowns and her brows raise as she realizes something. 

"I'll need you to hold the lines..." Pidge said. A plan forming in her head. 

"To what?!" Hunk said, his eyes widening. 

"I'll tell you my plan ok?? The plan is--" The villagers kept banging. In the end, the door gave in. The mob succeeds in breaking in, and finds a grand entrance filled with assorted pieces of furniture, teacups, candlesticks, featherdusters and clocks. They tiptoe in, and Morvok unknowingly picks up Hunk. Pidge whistled. 

"What a pretty sight~...Get 'em." Pidge said with a smug smirk from the top of the stairs. 

"NOW!" Hunk yells. All the objects spring into life, attacking their human enemies. Pidge smirks as she watches them being held back. 

"Up here, ya scurvy scum! Now!" Allura yells. She and all the cups pour boiling tea on the guy's head.

"AYE AYE AYEEEEEEEE~" Romelle says. The wardrobe jumps from the top of the stairs, landing on one of the mob men. Pidge nods satisfied as she watches her friends fight and rushes to Lance's lair. A comb and brush hop out and attack one of the thugs, pulling him into Wardrobe. When he emerges, he's dressed in a bikini top, yellow tu-tu, high heels, gloves and a pearl necklace and his hair's done up in a stack. He shrieks and runs away. Morvok is almost melting Hunk with a torch. Keith appears at the top of the stairs brandishing a gun and a pair of scissors. He's dressed like an admiral. He sees Hunk's predicament and slides what's going on and slides down the bannister, and pokes Morvok in the butt with the scissors, causing him to scream and leap into the air holding his pained rear. One of the mob is pulling feathers out of Shay and laughing. Hunk hops up behind him and flares up his candlesticks, burning the mobster in the bum. As he leaps in pain, Hunk catches the feather duster. Morvok and several others chasing the small cup, Coran. He runs into the kitchen. Thinking they've got him cornered against the cupboards, the mob laughs and advances, only to find that the knives pop out of the drawers and Shiro, the stove, flares up. They run screaming from the castle and the objects celebrate their victory.

"And stay out!" Keith yells. 

* * *

"YOU IDIOT!" Pidge says. Lance turns around with wide eyes. 

"P-Pidge?! What are you doing here??" Pidge laughs sarcastically and comes forward, smacking him over the head. 

"OW! WHAT THE--" He looks down to see an angry Pidge. 

"YOU! YOU ARE ATTACKED BY A MOB AND DO NOTHING- AND YOU EXPECT ME TO NOT BE ANGRY?! YOU! YOU WERE ABOUT TO DIE JUST BECAUSE I SAID I'D BE BACK AND YOU DO NOTHING?! YOU'RE A BIG IDIOTIC PIECE OF- GAHH! I COULD KILL YOU MYSELF FOR WORRYING ME LIKE THAT!" Lance's eyes widened. 

"W-Wait...You came back all the way here and helped us fight off the mob?" Pidge frowned and crossed her arms. 

"No, I came all the way here to watch and pick my nose...OF COURSE I DID, YOU MORON!" Pidge said. Lance felt warmth go to his cheeks. Suddenly the door creeks. 

"Oh ho hooo~ What have we here? Little Katie~" Pidge's eyes widened in horror.

"Lotor?! How did you..." The tall man pulled his crossbow out and chuckled. 

"Why would I relay on those dumbasses to do my job, huh? They're morons! They can't even pick up a rock without hitting themselves. I came here for the big prize, my love." Pidge frowned as Lance growled at the pet name. 

"When pigs fly, you asshole." Lotor's eyes widened and he smiled like a psychopath. 

"Oh Katie...Oh you beautiful sweet flower. Don't you see how you belong with me, my dear? You're so beautiful...if only you lacked that STUPID knowledge of yours." Pidge narrowed her eyes as Lotor stepped forward, his crossbow locked onto Pidge. 

"Don't you get it, my love? We could be happy....But i can free you, Katie. I will free you." Pidge's eyes widened as he pulled the crossbow and the arrow shot right through her shoulder. She screamed in pain and Lance's eyes widened in horror. He turned to Lotor and stepped in front of Pidge. 

"Ohhh~ The big mighty beast fights back? Alright...Let's dance!" Lotor rushes him and they fly out the window onto the balcony, where it has begun to rain. They roll on the roof where Lotor corners Lance and he can't fight back the huntsmen. Lotor breaks off a piece of the roof with a cruel chuckle. Pidge goes out onto the balcony and frowns. 

"LANCE!" Both guys stare in awe as she jumps on the roof effortlessly and slides down, getting up right behind Lotor. She stares at him as he stares at her with adoration. She takes out the arrow from her shoulder and hisses. Lotor's excitement grows. 

"Don't I love to see you suffer, my love?" He says, coming closer. That's when it hits her. 

"F-fuck..." She says, her knees trembling. Lotor gleams at the sight. 

"Isn't it beautiful?" Lance stares in horror as Pidge falls on her knees. Shaking. 

"THE HELL DID YOU DO?!" Lance says, anger spiking in him. Lotor chuckled. 

"Just a small dose of poison. Nothing much. An effortless and painful death. It's the same pain I had when you rejected me, my dear flower." Lance looked at Pidge in despair as she was grabbing onto her shoulder, slouched down in pain. 

"You...YOU DIGUSTING PIG!" Lance picks him up by the neck. Lotor gasps in despair. 

"W-wait p-please I-I don't want to die- NOOOO!" The beast threw him off and the hunter falls, never to be seen again. Lance picks Pidge up and brings her back to the balcony. 

"Pidge- No no no...stay with me...please." She coughs and smiles. 

"Maybe it’s better… it’s better this way...." Lance shakes his head. 

"How...? How could it be better?? Pidge, please...You're all I have and- and..." Pidge smiles and tears stream down her face. 

"Maybe...you can meet someone that loves you better than I did....I-I'm sorry...This is....all my fault...." Lance's eyes widen. 

"S-Say that again..." Lance says, pleadingly. She puts her hand on his cheek and rubs the fur with her thumb. 

"I...lo...." Suddenly. Her hand starts slowly slipping. Lance stares, tears streaming down his face. 

"No, no! Please! Please! Please don’t leave me! I love you- PLEASE!" He roars in despair and lets his head fall down. The objects watched as the last petal falls. They all sob at the loss of a friend and their humanity. The rain continues to fall. But one beam of light falls, like a shooting star. Then another comes. And another, and another. Lance finally notices what is happening. He stops crying for a second, then starts to back away. Fog begins to enshroud Lance. We see the objects looking on in extreme anticipation. He rises up into the air magically and begins to turn. He is enveloped in a cloud of light, and becomes wrapped in his cloak. Underneath, Lance's body shifting and forming. A fore paw comes out and the claws turn into fingers. A hind paw emerges and develops into a foot. Finally, a wind blows across his face and the fur melts away to reveal the young prince. He gradually descends and is laid on the floor again. The fog disappears and Lance is left there, in awe. Then he looks at Pidge and remembers his sorrow, but another light starts to shine in her chest and shoulder and then she opens her eyes. She sits up and starts coughing. She wheezes and starts panting. 

"PIDGE!" Lance says with teary eyes. He slides on his knees and hugs her tightly. Pidge blinks in surprise, her glasses crooked. 

"Uhh- wait wait...Lance...?" She says, pulling away and examining him. He smiles and nods. 

"Yes! Yes- It's me, Pidgeon." She opens her mouth to say something and then she blushes. 

"Welp shit- you're hot- I MEAN-" She covers her mouth as she blurted that out. Lance smirks with a smug look. 

"I know~" She looks unimpressed and smacks him over the head. He whines and rubs the spot. Then she pulls down on the collar of his shirt and pulls him in a kiss. Lance's eyes widen but soon enough he eases in. They kiss. A fireworks display explodes around them. The gloom surrounding the castle disappears, revealing a blue sky. The castle is transformed, with the gargoyles changing into cherubs, the snow melting and flowers blooming. Finally, we return to the balcony, where the objects hop out to meet the prince and Pidge. One by one, they are transformed back to their original human conditions. Pidge's eyes widen as Lance jumps up in excitement to hug his friends. 

"Allura, Hunk, Shay, KEITH!! LOOK AT US!" He said, hugging his friends. They all cheered and teared up. 

"CORAN CORAN THE GORGEOUS MANNNN! I'M A HUMAN AGAIN!" Coran exclaimed as he came as well, followed by Shiro. 

"Babe!" Keith exclaimed, going to hug Shiro. Pidge's brows raised up in surprise. Allura chuckled. 

"Ah, l’amour~" Allura says. Pidge giggles, sitting up. Romelle jumps in, cheering. 

"I'M HUMAN AGAIN! CUZ, CATCH MEEE!" Allura laughs as Romelle jumps her. 

"I told you she would break the spell!" Hunk said, jumping up in excitement and going over to hug Pidge. She chuckled and hugged the chubby guy that was her friend. Lance frowned and pushed Hunk off, clinging onto Pidge, his legs and arms curled around her. She was unphasedly holding him by his legs. 

"Uhhh..." Hunk said, confused. Pidge shrugged. 

"I had a protective older brother." Hunk made an 'o' shape with his mouth. 

* * *

Pidge and Lance were dancing around the floor. Pidge chuckles as they stop. 

"Pidge? I have a surprise for you." Lance said, softly. Lance's family coming closer and smiling at her. 

"Yes, my dear. We all have a surprise for freeing our son of this awful curse. Pidge raises a brow. 

"Bambina?" Pidge felt her heart drop at the words. She turns to see her mother in one of her father's inventions: A chair with wheels for the sick. The chair was being pushed by her brother and her father was at their side, looking better than ever. 

"Mamma? Matt? Papa...? Mia famiglia...?" Pidge said, covering her mouth with her hands. 

"Oh Pidgeon...You finally look like a girl." Matt says with a smirk. She tears up and rushes to her family to hug them. Lance smiles. Lance's mother leans in towards his son. 

"And...my grandchildren?" Lance flushes and looks at his mother with wide eyes. 

"MOM!" He yells in disbelief. Pidge turns to him with raised brow. He flushes even more. 

"Welp...now I know what I'm doing tonight--" Lance's sister smacked him over the head. 

"DON'T YOU TOUCH MY PRECIOUS BEAN!" 

"BUT I'M YOUR BROTHER!" 

"AND I LIKE HER BETTER! SHUSH!" 

The others from the group were watching the scene, unphased. 

"Ah...family." Keith said with a smirk.

**_ And they lived happily ever after. _ **

**_ The end. _ **


End file.
